The Mississippi Valley Fair is taking heat after not allowing some special needs guests to get on rides Tuesday, July 29, 2014.
Tuesday was Special Needs Day at the fairgrounds, and thousands are expected to come out this week. It was also the first day of the 2014 Mississippi Valley Fair. Mississippi Valley Fairgrounds General Manager Bob Fox told us Wednesday, July 30, 2014 that the ride company, Evans United Shows, didn't make it clear to guests that some of the rides had height and weight restrictions on them for children with special needs. Then when parents were told their children couldn't ride the rides for free, they became very angry.
"I found out what happened at the turn ways right after lunch, and we jumped right on it," Fox said Wednesday. "It went viral, and I felt terrible about that. I wouldn't do anything in the world to hurt these children or these adults, and when we found out about it, we got right on it. We tried to correct it, and we will correct it.
Other guests said that workers were very rude to them on Tuesday. Fox acknowledged that Wednesday. He says he's holding a meeting with workers from the company Wednesday to make sure the problem doesn't happen again.
In return, special needs children will be welcomed back to the Mississippi Valley Fair on Sunday, August 3, 2014 from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. Admission for them will be free.